1MORE Dual Driver ANC Pro Review
Neckband headphones with active noise cancellation
Verdict
With active noise cancellation, wind noise reduction and more, the ANC Pro is stuffed with as many features as you can get away with for a £149.99 asking price. While some work better than others, the device’s comfortable design, robust sound quality and long battery life are enough to elevate the ANC Pro to a recommendable status.
Pros
- Incredibly comfortable to wear
- Great battery life
- Good for bass and lows
Cons
- Wind noise reduction barely works
- ANC could be better
Introduction
At just £149.99, the 1MORE Dual Driver ANC Pro neckband headphones look to bring a plethora of top tier features to an affordable price.
1MORE has been gradually making its case over the last few years by offering value for money with its products. In a crowded marketplace they’ve delivered solid efforts – most recently with its True Wireless ANC earbuds – but now the company has set its sights on the fitness crowd.
The Dual Driver ANC Pro are by no means the most attractive piece of kit, but with a spec sheet of active noise cancellation, a 20-hour battery life and a dedicated ANC mode for wind resistance, it’s not hard to see why runners wouldn’t be interested.
Availability
- UKRRP: £145
- USARRP: $149
- EuropeRRP: €165
- CanadaRRP: CA$210
- AustraliaRRP: AU$215
The 1MORE Dual Driver ANC Pro was released in 2020, and costs £145 / $149 / €165 / CAD$210 AUD$215.
Design
- Comfortable to wear
- On-board physical controls
- Neckband design won’t stay in place for bench-pressing
With the increasing affordability of true wireless earbuds, good old neckband headphones have fallen out of vogue in recent years, but 1MORE’s latest pair make a solid case for why the design isn’t done just yet.
Utilising a rubber neckband, the ANC Pro sits comfortably and there’s enough weight to the device that it doesn’t go flying off on a run. The earbuds themselves boast oblong tips which – despite a healthy dose of skepticism – turned out to be for the better.
Compared to a typical design, the ANC Pro’s oblong tips sit comfortably within the ear, keeping them sturdy without the need to be inserted further into the ear canal. By comparison, I find that circular tips become uncomfortable after long periods of use due to how intrusive they can be – luckily, I never came across this issue with the ANC Pro. There’s also a magnetic panel on the back of both earbuds, allowing them to stay together when not in use.
To save you from fishing your phone out the pocket, the ANC Pro has onboard controls. At the press of a button, you can change the volume, activate the ANC Pro’s various noise cancellation modes and more. With a total of six physical buttons, the ANC Pro keeps things old school with nary a touch input in sight.
When it comes to workout equipment however, I’m much happier to opt for physical control inputs. There’s instant feedback, and it’s just a lot easier to navigate when you’re a sweaty mess.
It’s worth mentioning, however, that while the neckband design makes a lot of sense for runners and cyclists, it’s a different story for weightlifters. For instance, any exercise that involves you having to lie down on a bench will see the ANC Pro fall off in no time. I lost count of the number of times I had to readjust the device during a single chest press routine.
The ANC Pro does pack USB-C for charging – a port which can also be used for wired playback.
Features
- Noise-cancelling is not quite able to shut out very loud background noise such as traffic
- Wind resistance makes very little difference
As you’ve no doubt surmised, the 1MORE Dual Driver ANC Pro’s key feature is active noise cancellation. Hit the dedicated ANC button and you’ll be greeted by its highest setting – hit it a second time and the intensity is reduced, letting in more sound.
Being able to nab the feature for shy of £150 is a big deal, but it’s for that reason the ANC Pro won’t wow anyone who’s used the likes of the Sony WF-1000XM3 or similarly high-end earbuds.
The ANC Pro does a decent job of keeping peripheral noise at bay whilst at the gym, but the noise cancellation isn’t strong enough to tackle the likes of the London Underground or heavy traffic.
Of course, given that the running community is at the heart of the ANC Pro’s design, there’s also a second feature for tackling wind resistance. In theory it’s a great idea, but it falls flat with the ANC Pro.
Two storms rolled through the UK during my testing of the ANC Pro, but the wind noise resistance brought no discernible clarity to the song I was listening to. In fact, on all occasions, I simply switched back to the active noise cancellation setting, finding clearer sound there.
The 1MORE Dual Driver ANC Pro touts a 20-hour battery life out of the box and this checked out during testing.
Even with the noise cancellation switched on, I was able to get through several days of use before needing a recharge. This included trips to the gym, using the ANC Pro for Zoom calls and casual listening.
If you’re an absolute music lover, you could theoretically go through an entire day’s worth of playlists without needing to charge. While that might seem a gargantuan task, it’ll certainly be a godsend for marathon runners who’ve been burned by lacklustre batteries.
Sound quality
- Very good sound quality, especially the bass
- However, the sound isn’t as immersive as some other headphones
The ANC Pro sticks the landing where sound quality is concerned. I think a fair amount of people will be impressed with what’s on offer here.
Above all, bass and lows are central to the ANC Pro’s character. Listening to Silversun Pickups’ cover of Toy Soldiers and the track opens with a strong bassline that sets the tone for the rest of the song. With the ANC Pro, the bass is constant and unrelenting.
The attention to the bass gets better when you switch it up to dance tracks centred around a thumping rhythm. Doja Cat’s Say So is a great example, with the bassline elevating the rest of the song to a point where it’s impossible to not bop your head to the beat.
The ANC Pro’s focus on bass doesn’t necessarily detract from the mids and highs. I was pleasantly surprised to find that songs still sounded complete and I could pick up on distinct audio layers. The only downside is that the sound isn’t quite as natural or as immersive as I’ve found on other headphones. Coming off the fantastic LG Tone Free FN6 wireless earbuds that boast an incredible degree of immersion, the ANC Pro’s lack of was jarring.
Should you buy it?
You need good running headphones These headphones are very comfortable to wear while you’re on the move, thanks to the rubber neckband and secure in-ear buds
You like to listen to music while you lift While the gear stays in place when you’re running, it’s liable to slip off when you’re bench-pressing
Final Thoughts
The 1MORE Dual Driver ANC Pro isn’t quite at the level of the best in any of the fields it’s competing in, but the device is better than the sum of its parts.
With great attention to bass, a long-battery life and a semi-decent noise cancellation, the ANC Pro is a great option for outdoor runners. It also bears the title of being one of the most comfortable pairs of headphones I’ve had the pleasure of wearing.
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How we test
FAQs
The 1MORE Dual Driver ANC Pro features IPX5 water resistance, which means they can withstand rain, sweat and a small splash of water but can’t be submerged in water.
Yes, the 1MORE Dual Driver ANC Pro features active noise cancellation.
The 1MORE Dual Driver ANC Pro has a 20-hour battery life.
Specs
Jargon buster
ANC
ANC (Active Noise Cancellation) uses an array of microphones in a headphone to detect the frequency of the sound coming at the listener, with the ANC chip creating an inverse wave (i.e. opposing sound) to suppress any unwanted external noises.Midrange
Midrange refers to the part of the frequency range that sits between the bass and treble. The midrange is the area that handles vocals and most of the instruments heard in a track. It can also be in reference to midrange loudspeaker drivers that replicate this area of the frequency range.
Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
